AC198
by ivy alias
Summary: A take on the lives of pilots 01 and 02 after the series. Duo POV. Warnings: Rambling, language, weaponry. Reviews loved. First part now complete.
1. prelude

AC198prelude  
I look out at the street sometimes from my window and wonder just *why* I hadn't been normal. God, not that there's anything "normal" about me that would salvage that anyway. 

  
But what if I was just born some average kid? Parents, white picket fence, dog named "Rover", yammering siblings, and mashed potatoes and roast beef. The whole nine yards.

But here I am, an 18-year old war vet and former Gundam pilot who used to call himself "Death".

That's a part of my life down the drainpipe. 

It's not like I haven't started over. Somewhat. I work full hours to pay my rent and needs. I'm like your average blue-collar, in my own sense. The others have gone off their separate ways too.

Quatre... Well, he's in full command of his father's company now, with Rasid, the Maguanac fighters, and at least ten sisters to advise him. He's a very busy guy, so we keep in touch when he can. If you think it's too much time that I'm taking up, you take it up with him. I'd leave him alone if it was better for him, but more than likely, he needs the therapy and release of doing something to relax himself. 

Trowa was with the circus, last I saw him. That was a year ago. They came through L2 and, believe me, a circus can be a pretty rare thing. It was a nice opportunity to see the show, and I'll be damned if Trowa is not the most flexible man alive. Stopped backstage after the performance and talked with him for a minute. I think he was stunned by seeing me there... or not. Trowa's always been hard to decipher, even for a guy who hung around the ultimate soldier for kicks. Life seemed to be treating him fair, I assume, seeing how much he bulked up. It's a mystery to me on exactly *how* he'd become that muscular..

Wufei's still with the Preventers, as far as the ol' roster goes. Personally, I think it's only partly because he wants to ensure peace. The other part is that he wants to be around Sally. She's a nice woman, and I'm just counting down the days to hearing of the engagement. I really should contact him sometime, kinda suprising that I haven't already done it. You kind of grow close to a person after being trapped in a cell and nearly suffocated with them. Bonding in the face of death, you could call it. 

Heero. I don't know what I can say about him. He's with me, still. We're sharing an apartment, and right now, he's in class. Yep. The soldier is at school. About a month after the.. incident.. he enrolled in the university near where I was, and I offered to split the rent with him. Lo and behold, Yuy actually accepted my offer. He's been in good health, but I don't know about emotionally. Basically, he's shut off. He goes to school, does his homework, eats occasionally, sleeps, and works as a freelance assassin otherwise. A good day is when I can drag him out to eat somewhere decent and get him to hold up his half of the conversation, in a sense. He's not that bad, if you know him well, and... Lord, I'm dragging on with this. 

Relena Peacecraft is still trumped up on her high horse as Vice-Foreign Minister. It hadn't stopped her from hounding Heero though. I ran across her a few times in the six months following the Mariemaiya thing, and, dammit, I felt bad for her. She couldn't of known how pathetic it looked, to follow a guy like *Heero* like some homing pigeon. Around the third time we'd "run" into each other (She planned it out. I may be American, but that doesn't qualify me as an idiot.), I caved in and set her up with him. 

I haven't seen her since, and Heero refuses to tell me anything.

It's a pain in the ass to have people withhold information about their love lives when yours sucks. 

I think war really warps your initial perception of most people. Hirde.. Jesus, it was like she wanted to get married! What was I going to do? It would be a cold day in Hell when I felt like settling down at the ripe age of 16. 

She said I had a commitment problem.

I still see her sometimes, and I always think about what would have happened if I said 'yes'. There'd have been a small, quiet wedding, mostly with her friends, I assume, honeymoon on Earth, and by now, we'd already have a kid. Okay, she didn't propose, but that was somewhere down along the line.

I probably do have a commitment problem. So what?

Her fault anyway. Nothing I could do. It's the way I work.

So here I am, two years after the war, still alive (amazing as that may be), taking the occasional class, shacking up with the Indestructible Man™ and getting ready to head out for 10:30 mass, one of the few good habits I maintain. 


	2. act1.endearment

endearment

I wonder if people still use real trees for Christmas anymore. 

That was my thought of the moment as I walked through the department store. The holidays were coming up, and fast, and no gifts either.

I really suck at the shopping ahead-of-time thing.

I had a goal though, to actually find a useful gift for Heero, one that would preferably make him say a complete sentence to me without any of the glares from his repertoire. 

What would he need anyway?

I pondered it as I walked throught the store in my preoccupied state. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I could feel the salesclerks watching me for no reason.

I hadn't taken anything yet. 

People don't trust enough anymore. 

Anymore, anymore.

Nevermore. Nevermore. 

I laughed as the vague thought surfaced from a literature class. Edgar Allen Poe. Now that was one terrifically screwed person. Him and e.e.cummings and Vincent VanGogh, even though VanGogh's not even a poe-

I could just get him a new holster. That would work. I can only imagine what kind of hell that thing goes through on a normal day. It would be useful. I can hardly imagine what shit the shoulder holsters he has already must go through.

I don't like his job, but that doesn't mean I shouldn't take it into account. He's doing what he does best, and I can't blame him for that. I guess Peacecraft-san's ideas haven't quite left the desired effect on his conscience. So he goes out every night and comes back at 3 in the morning, blood crusting on his wounds, not all his, and blue eyes that just-

Not that I give a shit. 

Who am I to care?

He pays his share of the rent, so I guess his… 

Okay, I'm not that cruel. I'm worried about him, it's not good to be killing so many people for so long. It's not healthy. It's not good for him- I mean, it's a way and means, and not to say that he doesn't do anything productive, it's just that he-

I'm just worried. Simple concern. 

That's all.

Glancing at a display case of watches, I smiled at my reflection, and then at the clerk behind the glass box. She was cute, in a way. Her hair was a sharp shade of jet black, making her ethereal pale skin look even more like alabaster than it already did. Somehow, it seemed like shades that should make a woman look sleek and sophisticated. 

Then again, the girl only looked to be about seventeen, and something about her made it seem so…

Cute.

You don't ask. I don't ask. 

"How much is the one right there?" I asked, jabbing my finger towards some random timepiece.

"Not much." She grinned back at me… brightly.

Almost too bright.

God, I was starting to feel uncomfortable, and the girl only had said two words to me. Not a great sign. Something in the way she was looking at me was just… wrong. Her eyes darted to something under the case, out of my sight. 

The sinking feeling in my stomach was dropping to thirty feet below sea level. A bad sign.

"Really." Maybe I should have asked it like a question, but I didn't, and now I just sounded like a smartass. 

Her pleasant reality-shielded-salesperson demeanor was wearing thin, and if I hadn't been paying attention, I wouldn't have seen her hand moving behind her.

Aw, this was looking REAAAAAL good now. 

I began to step back from the metal lining, boots making a small noise against the linoleum flooring. My, this section was… vacant.

If there wasn't any other way to describe this, it would have been a big flashing sign that read "SETUP".

"Move another inch, Duo Maxwell, and this bullet will be deeply lodged in your cranium. "

Didn't see **that** one coming, nooo…

She maneuvered her hands just so, and I could see the small pistol titled right to where I could get lead lodged between my eyes and further. In her darkened eyes, I didn't see emotion, just that kind of perverse love of holding someone's life in your hands that I have come to recognize.

"What do you want?"

Ouch… That was a cliché. 

"You live with Heero Yuy, don't you?"

Ah.. A friend of Heero's. I'll have to ask him someday about how he manages to piss these people off. 

"We fought in the war."

"I know that." In her voice there was an edge of frustration. 

"What does it matter?" I stepped towards her now, smiling again. Never stop smiling. The friendliest expression I know of is also able to confuse and infuriate just about anyone who doesn't know why you're doing it. 

I didn't know either, really. It was bothering the kid though, and that was a good enough reason to be smug. 

"Where is he going to be tomorrow night?" The pistol was beginning to waver.

"Why should I know?" The moment I said it, I thought of another question.

Why didn't I know?

Why don't I just kick him out, if only on the basis that he is anal when he comes home? I could pay the rent on my own, I know that. Why am I going out to get a gift for someone who just might not give a damn that it was a holiday that I held dear approaching? 

Lord help me, I didn't know. 

I really wanted to go home. REALLY wanted to get home. 

I wanted to get home and talk to Heero and have him explain why the hell they knew who I was. 

I just wanted to be near Heero, for that matter. It would be some kind of bizarre comfort to me, to know that he was near me. 

The barrel was shifting from side to side.

"What do you want him for?"

She blinked, transferring her weight to her other leg. I've done that before, you know, when you stand up for too long, and then it feels like your leg is jammed into it's socket. I have to give her credit. It's very uncomfortable, have to give her credit for standing like that for so long. It does get annoying.

Then again, we haven't been like this for very long.

I really needed Heero to get here. 

Why did I want him here? NOW of all times?

"I need his location. Just tell me and you don't get hurt."

How nice. 

Why don't I just turn him over, make this easier? 

It could all be so simple. 

I'd miss him.

That was all.

I'd miss hearing his voice murmuring "Baka" under his breath every time I said something out of the blue, even if it was relevant. I'd miss having a reason to be staying up late, so he'd just collapse on the sofa next to me as I channel surfed. I'd miss seeing his face when I said something that /really/ surprised him, and watching with amazement when I find out tthat there are more emotions in his book than just the cold indifference and the occasional smugness. 

I didn't want to lose him.

I've lost so many people before.

"Hurry up. I don't have all day," salesgirl-assassin hissed at me.

I shook my head at her, "Can't say. I haven't seen him since yesterday. He's not quite social." That was the truth. He wasn't "quite social" in the least.

"Don't be stupid."

"Funny, I hear that a lot." The line might've been more intimidating if she was taller than me. Growing about six inches in the past year and a half was hell on my wardrobe, not to say I wasn't thankful for it. I was only going to grow a few more inches anyway. 

"…."

"Just put the gun down, miss. You're not going to shoot me, and it sure isn't scaring me. I don't want you to scare anyone else in the store." 

Her eyes widened, and I could tell the only reason the gun was still up was because she was trying to be stubborn.

I did the only thing I could.

"Farewell!" 

I turned and walked away.

Tell me if you can think of a better solution that doesn't get a bullet through the head or me arrested.

****

I glanced at the number on my door. 21C.

Ah, how nice to make it home.

To be honest, the place wasn't as nice as the thought of it. 

The ceiling had stains, evidently from a previous tenant that was a chain smoker. At least it didn't reek of it anymore, as it had when we moved in. The floor was thinly carpeted, but it didn't creak as much as the last apartment we'd rented. The first was almost about to collapse, and even Heero admitted that it would be more logical to stay someplace sturdier. Beside that, it was also closer to the university, which also served us both just fine. 

I unlocked the deadbolt, stepped inside, and kicked the door shut. 

Judging from my limited view of the kitchen, Heero hadn't come home yet. There were still dishes in the sink.

I'm no neat-freak, I still keep things tidy. 

I just don't like doing the dishes. Heero can handle that. I iron and vacuum. 

Oh, life with Heero. 

****

Three hours later, and I found myself stretched out over the couch, and feeling damnably miserable.

Heero wasn't home yet.

He should be home by now.

He's ALWAYS home by now.

Why the hell wasn't he here?!

He had dishes to do! I'm not going to do them! No way, no how!

My shoulders hung low on my frame as I sat up.

Moron. You knew it. You knew it.

You're worried.


	3. act1.attachment part one

(01102002 – sorry about lateness! I was too tired to go on much at all last night! ^^;)

Attachment

Four whole days.

Four days.

He's been missing a lot of classes, doesn't he know that?

I bet he's not eating right.

He's never eaten right.

Hell, I'm lucky if I even get him to eat **toast**!

What about that psycho at the department store? Did she find out where he was? 

Is he sick?

Am I just being paranoid?

Probably.

I didn't want to do the dishes. I did them eventually. But every day so far, I've left them in the sink.

Hmmph. I can see it now- "Oi! Heero! Get your ass back here! You have dishes to wash!"

Keeping a gun with me was an almost unbreakable habit after the war, but I trained myself out of it.. Well, Hirde did. She kept complaining about the gun to the point that I just stopped carrying it so she wouldn't have something to whine about. I carried my gun because I was paranoid. Because I was uneasy. It was the only way you could tell I was a pessimist.

Heero. Get back here. I'm carrying my gun again.

****

The park was fairly empty, but considering that most people were eating dinner now, it wasn't surprising. 

I wanted to go somewhere and think. 

I wanted Heero to be there.

Why does everything go back to HIM!? 

I sat down on the bench and looked towards the artificial pond, big help that would do.

Some inane hope in me formulated the idea that he'd be at the park. He always went to the park in the evening, before he came home. I don't know what he did out here. He just sat there every day. Here, I should say. On the bench where I am now. Maybe he was watching the kids play, thinking of his own childhood, perhaps? Thinking of missed opportunities? 

Looking at the pond like it was going to give him some mystical answer?

It sure as hell wasn't doing any good for me at the moment. 

There were a few people here though, mostly couples. They walked along hand in hand, smiling like there was no observant and idle bystander watching them…

That is one of the most awkward things you can do. You sit alone somewhere and watch people, and don't hope they realize that you're the one with the eyes drilling into their backs.

I bet Heero doesn't feel like this.

Someone sat on the bench one over from mine.

I couldn't help it.

I glanced ov-

Dammit. If you can find anyone, just ANYONE that has worse luck than me, please. Tell me.

I want to laugh at them and make myself feel better.

The girl on the bench stood up again and sauntered over to me, cute face still smiling like maniac. 

I wasn't having a good week.

She stood before me.

"So.. What's your name?" I could see the gun in the pocket of her trenchcoat, and I really didn't care. She should get a holster like Heero has, considering how much she must carry that pistol around.

"Where is Heero Yuy?"

"I don't know."

Her face was strained. "Tell me."

I had a gut instinct that she got some grief about me telling her nothing the first time. "I don't know. He's been gone. What do you need him for anyway?"

"It's none of your business, Maxwell."

"Hey, is this one of those 'The American Is Too Dumb To Handle It' things cause if it is I-"

"Where is he?" 

Okay, this was starting to piss me off.

"I don't know, dammit!" 

"I have to find him before anything else happens… You really don't know where he is?" Her voice held something I recognized even more than the look in her eyes days earlier. 

Empty hope.

"What would happen?"

She dropped her hands, and I could hear metal clack, "Nothing good… Nothing good."

Then she fell over.

Well, I could think about something other than He-

That guy who I split rent with.


	4. act1.attachment part two

Attachment- part 2

I dried off the last dish and set it on the small stack.

It was pretty damn obvious that Heero wasn't going to be home tonight.

I could hear snores drifting in from the main room, and I thank God that the girl didn't have a concussion. 

Her name was Avignon, like the old city in France, and apparently she was working for someone very important.

Either that or very rich.

My handgun was tucked into the back of my jeans. I don't wish physical harm on anyone, but I don't trust people who point guns at me either. 

It came down to simple matters. 

Who the hell was this woman passed out on my couch?

I stepped back into the room-God, don't let the damn floorboards creak any-

I winced at the distinct squeal beneath my feet.

"…Uhm? What?"

So much for letting my houseguest sleep..

"Good afternoon, miss! Did you have a good nap?"

Even I know the value of a nap. Even HEERO does.

"…Where am I?"

Aw… Damn. I was going to have to spell this out one way or another.. "You fainted." Well, it wasn't that hard.

Her eyes widened, "Where is Heero Yuy?!"

"You sound like a broken record… Heero's NOT HERE." I made an extra point of annunciating it this time. God, let SOMETHING seep through.. "Why are you bent on finding him anyway?"

"He's with you."

"No. I told you this before, didn't I?"

"Where is he?"

I was ready to scream. 

I WANTED to scream. 

I didn't say a word. I knew if I did, I'd regret it very much and very soon.

"Well?"

"What do you want with Yuy anyway? I'm not telling anything until you answer me." And I wasn't going to. Being pissed does a world of wonder for you resolve.

"It's… I…" Her face was almost fraying at the edges, "It would take too long.."

"When someone says that, it's a short and embarrassing tale. Besides, I have time."

Actually, I didn't, but if this could tell me something about Heero… It was worth taking a sick day. I was worried sick anyway. 

"I'm working for VUE, as a bodyguard. About a month ago, my charge was assassinated. By a man identified as Heero Yuy. If I don't find him and bring him to the council for evaluation, everyone I know dies. Is that good enough for you?"

Heero Yuy, mild mannered university student and hired gun.

So, this is how Heero pays his half.

I looked at her again. She wasn't lying. Not about something like THIS. 

VUE is a powerful syndicate on the colony. It's common knowledge that they have some skeletons in the closet, despite the fact that they generally deal in ergonomically correct facility planning. Essentially, they control over 20% of the market on the colonies. 

Visionary Universal Economics.

Yeah, that's visionary all right. 

Yep, Heero's not home, VUE wants to roast his ass over a bonfire, and psycho-saleswoman is trying to be heroic.

I think we're all in deep shit now, eh?

"Dammit…"

"Yeah. Where is he?"

I guess it was time to lay my own cards out..

"He's not here… The last time I saw him was five days ago, the night before I saw you. He hasn't been home since."

"Oh.."

"Why do I get the feeling that you're part of why he's not here anymore?"

She glared at me, "How did you meet him anyway?"

"Met during the war. Fought together sometimes. Split after the war until… you know." I didn't want to talk about the Mariemaiya thing. It makes me uncomfortable. I don't know. 

Maybe it's something about a little kid being u-

"Then what?"

"Then he moved in with me after. He goes to school."

"Hmm… Well, I guess I'll wait here for him!"

Wait….

Here?

"Hell no!"

She glared again, "Why not!?"

"You are NOT staying here! No! No way, no how! This is MY house, and you aren't staying!"

"Hey, I wouldn't if I didn't have to! This place is a condensed version of hell, but I need to get Heero Yuy. He's scheduled to meet with the council at the first opportunity. I can't go against them."

I was either going to have a heart attack or pop a blood vessel, maybe both. My hands were itching to go to my back and whip out the pistol, and possibly shoot her. I was NOT going to let this girl into my home. She did NOT belong here, and if she stayed, I had a feeling that Heero wouldn't be coming soon. I had to get her out somehow. 

She had determination.

I, on the other hand, had her wallet and her gun.

"We are going to make a deal here, and we're going to do it quick. You are going to go out onto the street, and wait for me to drop your purse here down, or I'm going to drop it anyway. I have a feeling that nothing will explode with a soft landing, hm? But a rough land, on the other hand…"

Alright, I admit it. I LOVED the look on her face as I explained my deal, in what I just noticed, to be my mobster voice. I'm a sadist sometimes, but I am DAMN proud of it, and for good reason.

Maybe it was selfish to do this kind of thing, but it was her and me, or Heero and me. 

Avignon gaped at me as I opened the window and held my arm out holding the small black purse at arm's length.

"Leave here."

I never saw a girl move that fast. When I judged that she was about halfway down the flight, I dropped it. 

Not before I took the license out, of course.

(TBC…)

NOTES: A few matters of business to take care of first.

ONE- Review please. If you hated it, if you loved it, I don't care. I just like to know what people think.

TWO- Hey, if nobody says anything, I'll 

THREE- The story might just cut off like that sentence above.

FOUR- I've had a crappy day. Stories are nice, but I need a big hug.

FIVE- No, Avignon is NOT a self insert. Sweet GOD no. She's just a nutbar of a career girl with a little too much adrenaline at her disposal.

REVIEW!


	5. act1.attachment part three

Attachment – part 3

I was lost. 

Lost.

God, I hate being lost.

"Please stand."

The congregation stood.

I kept kneeling. Maybe if I just kept kneeling like this, all day-Wait. What would be the sense in that? Yeah, Heero's gonna come into the church at 2 in the morning and tell me I'm a baka and get up and go home so we can watch the evening news together and I'll discuss the state of the world and how depressed I am about what happened at work today and-

Fat chance. He would say the baka part though.

Marie elbowed me in the side, "He said to **stand**."

"Ah." I stood.

She glanced at me again, then bowed her head reverently. I really owe it to her. She's a much better Catholic than I am, and a much more observant person. I can't place just when I met her. She's a canter at mass, and she's also the upstairs tenant. And two years younger than me, living on her own. In a way, she reminds me of Heero. In a way.

Marie is the only other anchor to reality for me, besides Heero, and I can't help it. Sometimes I cling to her for dear life. I thank God for people like this in my life- people smarter than I am and twice as sensible. She was like Hilde used to be, minus the infatuation thing, and a hell of a lot tougher. Besides, I don't have to worry about her that much-- She's got a boyfriend that practically lives in her home. 

I watch the two of them together and I can't help it, I get jealous. Seeing them both together, it's like they **feel** right around each other. Cooking and bickering and cleaning and just sitting on the sofa seems a hell of a lot more romantic with both of them. One time I asked Evan about it and he just smiled, 'I knew her for so long.. It just felt right to be around her.' 

I haven't felt right in a long time.

*****

"What was with you today? You were so out of it, even-Hello!? Earth to Duo!?"

"Huh?"

I was listening, really. I was just thinking about Hee--..things. I don't know why.. It's like I'm lost. 

Marie waved her hand in front of my face, "Duo…?"

"I'm fine, I'm just tired…" I mumbled, unconvincing even for myself.

She crouched down in front of me, "My ass. Did you have a fight with Heero?"

"What?"

"It has to be something to do with him. What's wrong? You've been in a funk for the past week."

I stared at her for a minute, then blinked and cast my eyes to the side. It's embarrassing to say that you miss your less-than-sane-assassin-in-deep-shit roommate. "He's not here.."

"What happened to him!?"

"The hell I know!" I yelped back at her.

I could see her bite back something sharp to yell at me and I had a feeling I'd hear it later. With a sigh, she stood up and extended her hand to me, "Let's go. Stone church steps are cold, no matter how holy they are."

Grinning, I took her hand, "Not a bad plan of action. Cut through the park?"

***********

"I'll see you later, babe! Ja!" I kicked the door shut with a usual amount of ceremony and slung off my jac-

Damn.

"Maxwell, I think you have something of mine. I want it back."

I grinned. I'm not a good liar. I don't try anymore. "Maybe I do."

"Where is it?"

"Don't know."

Avignon whipped out her trusty gun again, "Give me back my ID."

"You mean the Pacifist Union one or the license to kill?" 

I winced. Bad joke. Bad timing. 

"Don't be a moron."

"Déjà vu. Didn't we have this conversation before?"

"…." The gun almost seemed too big for her.

I had to buy time and kick her out. "What about Heero?"

"What about--who?" Her hands were steady.

I froze. What happened to the hellbent salesgirl? I thought she was.. Wait.. This isn't right.. She WAS looking for Heero, wasn't she? It sounded like she never even heard the name before.. almost.. It was deliberate. Something was again being set up in front of me and it was again glaringly obvious.

"Why aren't you asking about him?"

"I'm giving him a break."

"You're not SERIOUS, right?"

"Why wouldn't I be?"

"..Wait. What are you- What's going on?"

She groaned. It was a familiar sound. It can basically be interpreted as that she was pissed and too tired to put up any more fight with me. "..It's clear he isn't going to show up- especially since he found out about me somehow. I'm not going to bother you about this anymore as long as you just give me the ID back so I can get the hell off this colony before I'm killed."

On second thought, she wasn't such a bitch after all. "..Why?"

Her eyes were weary, making her look three times what her age probably was. She was tired and wanted to get out. "I told you already. Don't look a gift horse in the mouth, okay? I want to get on with my life, you with yours."

I did want to get on with my life- she was the deterrent to me doing so.

"Promise, Avignon?"

"..Yes." 

And in some twisted surreal revelation, I realized that I trusted her. A little.

"Alright." I took the thin plastic out of my pocket. I always keep things I don't want to lose with me. Looking at it one last time, I handed it to her, "Just so you know- If you come back again looking for Heero, I might kill you."

She nodded. It was a given.

And I was dead serious about that. I smiled, "But, hey, if you're in the area again, don't hesitate to stop by, ma'am."

Avignon looked at me with a little surprise and probably a little wonder of why I was being so damn friendly all of a sudden. I was wondering, too. Her mouth tipped in a wary smile, "If."

(TBC..)

Notes- Biiiiig delay in posting this. Yeah. So sue me. I really don't care. I'm writing original stuff out the wazoo, and that's much more enjoyable. Nearf.

In case you couldn't tell, this is an old old fic, and I doubt that I'll continue the sequel once I finish posting this. ::runs away::


	6. act1.attachment part four

Attachment – part 4

I draped backwards over the sofa and arched back into a normal position sitting up. A little bleary, I looked at the clock hanging askew on the wall. 

3:42 am.

Alone on Christmas. Jesus, this would make a wonderful television drama.

I'd already been to midnight mass, and tried to linger there for a while before jogging home. When I got back, I caught the tail end of a movie I didn't even know they still showed- "It's a Wonderful Life". Seeing everything turn out wonderful and perfect… 

Just makes me think of how shitty I feel right now.

I had dinner with Marie and Evan upstairs. It was pleasant- sure. It was depressing- of course.

Idly, I flipped through the channels on tv.

No..

No..

No..

N-

The door opened quietly behind me, and shut the same way.

I kept my eyes on the screen. I wasn't going to look. I just kept my gaze forward and called out the only thing I could think of- "Oi! Merry Christmas, Heero!"

"Hn."

I smil- No. Don't smile, moron. What's the matter with you? You should be **furious** with him!

Listening, I could hear him toss his bag into his room- probably after doing some extensive reasoning that he would be more efficient if he unpacked tomorrow- and I could hear the floorboards creak as he walked towards the couch.

Wow. I never knew they sold something that could peel a potato 19 ways..

He sat down beside me, and I risked a quick glance at him. 

He hadn't been eating.

That's a great way to take care of yourself, asshole.

I could practically feel warmth radiating from him, ebbing at my consciousness in waves of sunli- I can't go into poetics at a time like this. My body, my will, and my mind don't work too well together all the time.

And I leaned into the warmth-leaning against Heero's shoulder. A smile was ready to shatter over my face, but I couldn't. I was too tired right now.

It felt like home.

There was probably something perfect and profound and philosophical thing I could've said right then- but first things first. He had to know this.

"…You have dishes to wash."

(End Act One)

Notes:

The anti-climax, hurrah, hurrah. @_@

I know, I know, it's something of a cop-out ending. Pteh. Oh well. 


End file.
